Final answer:
Missionaries aimed to impress Africans with the 'gifts' of civilization, such as Christianity and western cultural practices. They established churches, schools, and helped orphaned children to assimilate Africans into the conquering nations' culture.
Step-by-step explanation:
Missionaries aimed to impress the Africans with the 'gifts' of civilization brought from the imperial powers. These 'gifts' included introducing Christianity, monogamous marriage, and western civilization's fashion. By establishing churches, schools, and helping orphaned children, the missionaries hoped to assimilate the Africans into the conquering nations' culture.
For example, many missionaries were shocked by the practice of polygamy and demanded that men with multiple wives choose one and divorce the others. In China, missionaries insisted that Christian converts abandon ancestor veneration, causing them to be rejected by their families.
Overall, the missionaries believed they were improving African societies by introducing and spreading the hallmarks of western civilization.